If Guus Hiddink wasnâÂÂt sweating before, he most certainly should be now.
Not only do his Turkey side face a mountain of a task when they face Germany on Friday night â but they will also have to do it without Arda Turan.
News came out of the camp on Tuesday that Arda was forced to stop training due to a persistent injury. Not only was he ruled out of FridayâÂÂs game, but it has also been suggested that the Galatasaray captain will miss 6âÂÂ8 weeks of action. Including the derby against Fenerbahce.
On the other side, Joachim Low is not without problems of his own. Bayern Munich midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger has been withdrawn from the squad after he damaged ankle ligaments last weekend. Low is already without Michael Ballack and will hand Philipp Lahm the task of captaining the side.
All eyes will be on a certain Mesut Ozil as he prepares to face his âÂÂmother countryâÂÂ. It will be the first time Ozil faces Turkey in his short international career and the player has already expressed his excitement at facing âÂÂhis friendsâÂÂ.
Ozil also sent out what sounded to be a âÂÂdonâÂÂt be offendedâ pre-warning should he find the net on Friday evening. âÂÂIf I score then of course I will react somehow. It depends on the situation, we will seeâ - setting the scene up perfectly for a patriotic kiss on the badge while running around like a mad man.
In the absence of Arda Turan, Hiddink will be putting his faith in Nuri Sahin in the hope that the young midfielder can open up the German defence. This unenviable task shouldnâÂÂt been too much trouble for the player who is in his fifth with Borussia Dortmund and has already been touted for EuropeâÂÂs elite after a blistering start to the Bundesliga season.
If all else fails Turkey can be safe in the knowledge that they wonâÂÂt be without support in Berlin. With over two million Turks living in Germany, we could potentially see an international fixture where the away fans out-number those of the home team.
Something Joachim Low has already highlighted by stating that he âÂÂwas at the Euro 2000 qualifier in 1999 at Munich as a spectator and it was similarâ before reassuring the home fans that it wonâÂÂt affect his team. A video of GermanyâÂÂs 4-1 demolition of Argentina at this summerâÂÂs World Cup would also have been an appropriate response.
Of course Germany will be the favourites for Friday nightâÂÂs clash. Turkey will be confident following their promising start and in Hiddink they have a Dutchman who will most certainly do everything in his power to get one over a Germany team.
Should Hiddink orchestrate a win in Berlin, it will most certainly rank up as one of the best achievements in his career while the players could draw confidence from this video.
Hakan SukurâÂÂs goal was the only one when Turkey last beat the Germans in a competitive match. Fingers crossed for some goal-keeping of the same sort this time around.
